Paper Girl

I haven’t left my house in over a year. My doctor says it’s social anxiety, but I know the only things that are safe are made of paper. My room is paper. My world is paper. Everything outside is fire. All it would take is one spark for me to burst into flames. So I stay inside. Where nothing can touch me.

Then my mom hires a tutor. Jackson. This boy I had a crush on before the world became too terrifying to live in. Jackson’s life is the complete opposite of mine, and I can tell he’s got secrets of his own. But he makes me feel things. Makes me want to try again. Makes me want to be brave. I can almost taste the outside world. But so many things could go wrong, and all it takes is one spark for everything I love to disappear…

Interview

1. What was your inspiration to write Paper Girl?
I was inspired by my own journey with anxiety disorder and the desire to write a book about a quirky, socially awkward girl who gets to be the hero of her own story.

2. Tell us one aspect of your book that is inspired by your real life experiences?
Many of the issues both the hero and the heroine face in this story are based off of real life experiences, however I also added some specific scenes I took straight from my own life, such as the rooftop meteor shower and movie night competition.

3. Share one thing about your debut publishing experience that was shocking to you?
It’s shocking to me that my debut book is the one YA book I wasn’t trying to get published. It’s turned out to be a wonderful thing, though.

4. Can you share with us your favorite line in the book and why? (Spoiler-free)
“How was it possible to love something so much and be so afraid of it?” I love this line my heroine asks herself because it basically sums up the message of the whole book, learning how to live your life and be who you really are despite your fears and flaws.

5. If you had to comp a few other books that are in line with your book, what would they be?
Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella, Girl Against the Universe by Paula Stokes, and Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon.

6. What are you reading now or your book crush (aka favorite book) you read this year so far?
I love everything by Jenn Bennett and I got to read Starry Eyes this year. It was no exception. Well-developed characters, a realistic and intriguing setting with real side characters, and romance.

7. Did you hide any secret easter eggs in your book that only a few people will find?
I typically put something in each book that relates to another book I’ve written, even if it’s just a line, but this time I didn’t. There were so many scenes and characters and ideas that were taken from real life, I didn’t consider adding something else.

8. Did you reference anything that means a lot to you, aka a song or show?
My characters have a lot of hobbies and quirks in the book that they find enjoyable, and they were put there for a reason. Those particular hobbies, such as paper art and counting steps and playing online chest, were lifelines for me when I was younger. A way to connect with myself in the real world when I was afraid to step out there on my own.

9. How did you select the names for your characters?
Zoe’s name just came to me because I liked it and it matched the picture of her I had in my mind, and then I brainstormed names for my hero with my oldest daughter because that’s how I always do it.

10. What is next for you?
I’m working on another contemporary YA while I edit the next two books of mine that will be releasing in 2019 and 2020. Both of those are dystopian novels so I wanted to change it up and write something current and relatable again.

About Cindy R. Wilson

Cindy began creating worlds as a kid, entertaining her siblings with spontaneous ghost stories before bed. She filled notebooks with novels and ideas and realized quickly she wanted to be a writer as an adult.

Now Cindy lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and loves using Colorado towns and cities as inspiration for settings in her stories. She’s the mother of three girls who provide plenty of fodder for her YA novels.

Welcome to BookCrushin!

Kelly and Christy, two parts of BookCrushin, are passionate book fangirls who read and share books with their closest monthly blog readers. There’s not a YA genre left out between them and they love comics, graphic novels, and some romance and adult fiction, too. From covering local events to booktube interviews to creative features, we feature daily posts alongside regular social media posts.